Take a deep breath

Thursday’s selloff in U.S. stocks and the fact its roots came from yet another potential European banking blowup generated some alarmist headlines and quick comparisons to financial crises of the past.

There’s no need to trot out the apocalypse hyperbole just yet.

Just before 11 a.m. ET Thursday the Dow Jones industrial average is off roughly 130 points to about 16,860. That is a 0.7% drop. The Standard & Poor’s 500 index also is down 0.7%. It’s hardly the kind of action that should have anyone reaching for a bottle of Maalox.

And remember, the Dow on Wednesday notched its third-highest close ever, and even now the blue-chip barometer is just 1.2% below its record high set a week ago.